Housebuilder Persimmon is benefitting from the early signs of a revival in the UK property market as completions and profits rose in its half-year period.
The FTSE 100 company completed 4,605 homes in the six months to 30 June, up 4% year-on-year, driven by a 7% increase in private completions to 3,987 units. Revenue surged 12% to £1.31bn as average selling prices rose 8% to £284,047.
Underlying operating profit jumped 13% to £172.0m.
Private average sales prices on completions climbed 7%, reflecting a higher proportion of Charles Church developments and what the company described as “robust pricing”. The group’s net private sales rate excluding bulk deals improved 5% to 0.62 per outlet per week.
These are all strong numbers and make the 2% drop in Persimmon shares on Wednesday seem unjustified, given the main drag on EPS was a one-off charge related to a CMA investigation.
Encouragingly, Persimmon maintained its full-year guidance of 11,000-11,500 completions, with housing operating margins expected between 14.2% and 14.5%. The company is now roughly 80% secured on private completions for the year.
“Persimmon’s half-year numbers underline a steady recovery in the UK housebuilding sector, with rising revenues, higher selling prices and robust forward sales giving the group confidence in its full-year targets,” said Axel Rudolph, Senior Technical Analyst at IG.
“While the flat statutory profit figure and cash outflow highlight the ongoing challenges of affordability and market uncertainty, the stable dividend and solid completions guidance suggest Persimmon is well placed to deliver on its growth ambitions into 2026.”
Expansion continues
The builder expanded its outlet network by 4% to 277 sites as it progresses towards a target of at least 300 outlets. Land investment remained strong at £210m during the half-year, whilst the company secured detailed planning for 5,066 plots – equivalent to 110% of completions.
Looking ahead, Persimmon expects volumes to grow to approximately 12,000 units in 2026, though it cautioned that margin progression may slow due to diminishing build cost inflation and affordability constraints.
The group’s forward order book stands at £1.86bn, up 9% year-on-year, providing solid visibility for the remainder of 2025.